Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2016, published 106th ILC session (2017)

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Portugal (Ratification: 1959)

The Committee notes the observations from the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers (CGTP) and from the General Union of Workers (UGT), communicated with the Government’s report.

Article (1)(b) of the Convention. Gender identity. The Committee notes with interest that pursuant to the Law 28/2015, which was adopted on 14 April 2015, “gender identity” is now included as a prohibited ground of discrimination under section 24(1) of the Labour Code. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on its application in practice.

Articles 1 and 2. Discrimination on the grounds of race, colour, national extraction or social origin. The Committee has been referring to the measures needed to foster the integration of Roma people, particularly with respect to access to employment and education. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the National Strategy for Integration of Roma Communities 2013–20 includes several measures with a view to improving employment and education of members of the Roma community as well as the establishment of the Observatory of Roma Communities (OBCIG). The Committee also notes the implementation of the project for Municipal Mediators by the Office of the High Commissioner for Immigration and Intercultural Dialogue (ACIDI), which is intended to facilitate Roma people’s access to public services and facilities, particularly in the sphere of education and employment, by incorporating Roma mediators at the municipal level. Moreover, a national study on Roma communities was elaborated by the OBCIG, and awareness-raising activities on the need to combat racial discrimination were carried out by the Commission for Equality and Against Racial Discrimination (CICDR) and the ACIDI. Regarding procedures and remedies against racial discrimination, the Committee notes that in 2011 and 2012, 173 cases were brought before the CICDR, of which 31 concerned labour discrimination with only three resulting in final decisions involving the imposition of fines. In this regard, the Committee notes that according to the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), the fact that racial discrimination complaints procedures are lengthy, have numerous stages and rarely result in a positive outcome for the victim explains why so few discrimination cases are reported (CRI(2013)20, 9 July 2013, paragraphs 32 and 36). The Committee requests the Government to continue to take specific measures to foster the integration of Roma people, particularly with respect to access to employment and education and to provide information thereon, including statistical information concerning their situation in the labour market. The Committee further requests the Government to provide information on the effectiveness of the measures already taken and the results of the monitoring of the level of integration of Roma people undertaken in the framework of the National Strategy for Integration of Roma Communities 2013–20. The Committee once again requests the Government to take measures to improve the effectiveness and accessibility of procedures and remedies against racial discrimination and to continue to provide information on the cases brought before the CICDR and their outcome.

Article 2. Equality of opportunity and treatment between men and women. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to continue to provide information on the policies and measures adopted for the promotion of gender equality. The Committee notes, in this respect, that the CGTP refers to the difficult situation that women, in particular those with family responsibilities and those between 40–45 years, have to face due to the austerity measures. The UGT refers to the existing disparities in labour market participation between men and women. The Committee notes that the Fifth National Plan for Gender Equality, Citizenship and non-Discrimination 2014–17 incorporates a range of measures including for the reduction of entrenched inequalities between women and men in the labour market, for the promotion of women entrepreneurship, for the promotion of the implementation of plans to achieve equality in private undertakings, for the monitoring of compliance with standards of these plans in the public sector companies, and for the boosting of mechanisms to facilitate women’s access to financial decision-making positions. The Committee also notes that the evaluation of the National Plan for Gender Equality is periodically published on the website of the Commission for Equality in Labour and Employment (CITE). The Committee further notes that the Government has taken a range of legislative and policy measures to improve access of women to employment as well as for the reconciliation of work and family responsibilities. The Committee notes with interest, in particular, the adoption of Law No. 46/2014 and Resolution No. 11 A/2015 of 6 March 2015 of the Council of Ministers, which introduce measures to promote gender equality in management and supervisory positions; Resolution No. 13/2013 of 8 March 2013 of the Council of Ministers, providing a set of measures to guarantee and promote equality of opportunity and results between women and men in the labour market; Law No. 133/2015 of 7 September 2015, which establishes a mechanism against discrimination on grounds of pregnancy and maternity; and Law No. 3/2011 of 15 February 2011, which prohibits any discrimination in access to and exercise of self-employment. The Committee requests the Government to communicate on the results achieved on the measures already taken and to continue to take specific measures to promote gender equality in employment and occupation, and in particular, to improve women’s access to a wide range of jobs and to jobs at higher levels.

Equality plans. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the equality plans adopted. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that following the adoption of Resolution No. 19/2012 of 8 March 2012, which obliges enterprises in the public sector and encourages enterprises in the private sector to adopt plans to achieve gender equality, including in management positions and to evaluate their implementation, approximately 100 plans were evaluated in the private and the public sector in 2012. According to the results, in the public sector women represented 27.2 per cent of the members of the governing boards and women were at the head of the governing boards in only 16.7 per cent of the cases, in the private sector women represented only 9.5 per cent of the members of the governing boards and there were no women as heads of governing boards. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the number and nature of the gender equality plans adopted in public and private enterprises, including information on their effectiveness and results obtained.

Sexual harassment. The Committee has been referring to the need to take specific measures to foster awareness on preventing and combating sexual harassment in the workplace. In this regard, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the “Sexual and Moral Harassment in the Workplace Project” was approved in 2013, with the objective of carrying out a national survey on harassment in the workplace by the CITE. According to this survey, 14.4 per cent of women and 8.6 per cent of men had suffered sexual harassment in the workplace in 2015. The Government also indicates that the “Information Guide Preventing and Combating Harassment at Work: A self regulation support instrument” was published in 2013 to be used by companies to prevent and combat sexual harassment in the workplace. Moreover, awareness-raising activities on harassment in the workplace were carried out by the CITE. The Government further indicates that 84 infractions related to harassment were identified by the labour inspectors between 2010 and 2013, but that no judicial or administrative decisions involving sexual harassment at the workplace have been adopted. The Committee welcomes these initiatives and encourages the Government to continue to take measures to foster awareness among employers and workers and their organizations with respect to the importance of preventing and combating sexual harassment, including information on the procedures and remedies available to victims. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the follow up given to the 84 infractions related to harassment identified by the labour inspectorate between 2010 and 2013 and on any other infraction detected since then. The Committee further requests the Government to continue to provide information on any judicial or administrative decisions relating to sexual harassment in employment and occupation, including on the remedies granted and sanctions imposed.

Article 3. Collective agreements and gender equality. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that following the amendments to section 479 of the Labour Code on 25 June 2012, a preliminary evaluation of collective agreements shall be undertaken by the CITE. Section 479 also provides that any provisions identified in the analysed collective agreements that are found not to comply with the law in terms of equality and non-discrimination, shall be referred to the Attorney-General’s Office. In this connection, the Government indicates that 247 collective agreements were evaluated in 2012 and 2013, 86 non compliant provisions were identified, and 10 CITE’s opinions were submitted to the Attorney-General’s Office. Furthermore, the information guide “Drafting Provisions of Collective Labour Regulation Instruments with a Gender Equality and Non-Discrimination Perspective” was launched in 2012. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the evaluation of collective agreements from a gender perspective, on the follow-up given to those provisions of the collective agreements found to be not in compliance with equality and non-discrimination provisions, and on the impact of this process on improving equality of opportunity and treatment between men and women through collective agreements.